1. Field
The disclosure relates to a method, system, and article of manufacture for node discovery and communications in a network.
2. Background
A network may include a collection of nodes, such as computing systems, storage servers, etc., that are in communication with each other over communication links. There are many types of network, including local area networks (LAN), wide area networks (WAN), intranet, Internet, Storage Area Networks (SAN), etc. A high-speed subnetwork of storage servers and storage devices may be included in a SAN, where the storage servers may provide or control access to data that may be stored in the storage devices. For example, IBM* TotalStorage* Enterprise Storage Servers* (ESS) may function as storage servers in a SAN environment.
New nodes may be added to a network in which a set of existing nodes are already in communication with each other. Additionally, certain nodes within a network may fail. Monitoring systems may be implemented within the network on routers or switches to monitor the status of the nodes. The monitoring systems may monitor the nodes and the network for the failure or activation of nodes.
The rerouting of messages in the event of a failure of a node may be handled by routers or switches within the network. Additionally, certain monitoring systems may use broadcasting information to monitor the status of the nodes of a network, where broadcasting is a method for simultaneously sending the same information via messages to a plurality of recipient nodes in a network.